Saylor URL: http://www.saylor.org/books Saylor.org
Step 6 involves analyzing the data to ensure it’s as accurate as possible. If the research is collected by hand
using a pen and pencil, it’s entered into a computer. Or respondents might have already entered the
information directly into a computer. For example, when Toyota goes to an event such as a car show, the
automaker’s marketing personnel ask would-be buyers to complete questionnaires directly on computers.
Companies are also beginning to experiment with software that can be used to collect data using mobile
phones.
Once all the data is collected, the researchers begin the data cleaning, which is the process of removing
data that have accidentally been duplicated (entered twice into the computer) or correcting data that have
obviously been recorded wrong. A program such as Microsoft Excel or a statistical program such as
Predictive Analytics Software (PASW, which was formerly known as SPSS) is then used to tabulate, or
calculate, the basic results of the research, such as the total number of participants and how collectively
they answered various questions. The programs can also be used to calculate averages, such as the average
age of respondents, their average satisfaction, and so forth. The same can done for percentages, and other
values you learned about, or will learn about, in a statistics course, such as the standard deviation, mean,
and median for each question.
The information generated by the programs can be used to draw conclusions, such as what all customers
might like or not like about an offering based on what the sample group liked or did not like. The
information can also be used to spot differences among groups of people. For example, the research might
show that people in one area of the country like the product better than people in another area. Trends to
predict what might happen in the future can also be spotted.
If there are any open-ended questions respondents have elaborated upon—for example, “Explain why you
like the current brand you use better than any other brand”—the answers to each are pasted together, one
on top of another, so researchers can compare and summarize the information. As we have explained,
qualitative information such as this can give you a fuller picture of the results of the research.